Alyssa Westerman
Corporate Development Intern
Fall 2009

My internship experience at PROJECT C.U.R.E. has far exceeded my expectations of any internship experience. To be honest, I was in the market for a full-time job and not an unpaid internship, but my experience interning at PROJECT C.U.R.E. has provided me with invaluable and insightful experience that few jobs would have provided me with at this point in my life.

The following are several ideas and concepts that I was familiar with prior to interning here, but that I did not completely grasp until now:

• Reallocation of resources could mitigate a vast majority of the developing world’s problems. - It amazes me and disgusts me to know that the developed world fills up landfills with things that could greatly improve the lives of others.  Most Americans are so far removed from destitution that I don’t think they acknowledge, or even realize, that much of their waste is what other people would kill to get their hands on.  Although a reallocation of resources would be logistically complicated, more than anything it requires awareness.  Hopefully one day the trash that ends up in our landfills is truly trash, and no use to anyone else.
• Nonprofits can be competitive just like profitable enterprises. - PROJECT C.U.R.E. competes for funds, exposure, and to advance its own cause just like a business fights for a contract or a business partner.  What’s incredible to me is that all of this is for a humanitarian cause, rather than personal financial gains. It’s refreshing to see so much motivation for a noble cause.
• Fundraising is an art. - I never knew just how much effort it took to raise money for even a reputable, well-known cause.  PROJECT C.U.R.E.’s cause seems so self-explanatory to me that is amazes me how much is involved to get money from a large corporation or organization with the funds to spare; it seems like a no-brainer, but it takes coaxing and lots of time, energy, and skill.

These realizations may seem obvious, and they are to some extent, but it really takes first-hand experience and exposure to completely grasp some ideas.  These insights, among others, have reinforced my decision to pursue a career in International Development and have opened my eyes to the nonprofit sector’s seemingly endless sea of opportunities.